Bioluminescence
by Guilty.Ink
Summary: Contractors were supposed to be rational creatures but there was nothing quite logical about the world's most skilled Contractor following around a reckless MI6 agent. Hei/OC.
1. Deceit

**A/N:** My first DTB fanfic, I hope you enjoy! :) Disclaimer: I (quite obviously) do not own DTB.

**August 4th, 2013: Found some time to edit this little old story! I do hope any returning readers would find this one more...informative. It's a bit longer, and more insightful and explains the situation a lot better - or so I hope it does. **

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Chapter One: Deceit 

A dark haired young man walked by the stand as he did every morning, his hands in his pockets and eyes down. To a curious, wandering eye - they would skim right by this indistinguishable boy in the midst of just another ordinary road, in another ordinary town, in ordinary clothing. And yet he was always alert. There was no mission yet, no reason to make public contact with the Doll but when his indigo eyes slid over to check - his eyes widened at the sight of someone bending over and leaning in.

_Damn_, he thought,_ this isn't good_. His eyes were still dangerously narrowed as he quickly made a plan in his head but the serious expression hid under a timid one as Li Shengshun - not Hei, the Black Reaper - bump accidentally into the woman. Immediately his hands flew up. "Sorry, ma'am, I didn't see you!"

But without a doubt seconds before someone shoved into her, the woman - a girl, really - felt the hairs on the back of her neck, warning her. Primal instincts told her to turn the hell around because there was danger – but when she stood up, she only saw an apologetic, timid looking man laughing with an obvious embarrassed expression. "Really sorry," he said again good-naturedly.

She blinked.

He had black hair and his face hinted of Asian descent - but his dark blue eyes seemed...well, she couldn't quite put a finger on it. They were shifty. But despite his smile, she couldn't help but wonder if that was really genuine or not, a rarity for her._ If he's faking it - I guess I will too. _So this 18 year-old girl laughed and fingered her hair. "Oh it's not your fault at all!"

"I should have looked -" he stopped and blinked and leaned over her, peering inside the stand. His dark blue eyes were openly curious. Just for a moment, panic spiked from within her. _Am I compromised already?_ But before she could think thoroughly, his warmth caught her off guard and she was left staring at his collarbone, his neck, his jaw as he tilted his head and leaned in to look. "Huh? Was somebody here?" He asked, seeming curious yet...not. He was difficult to decipher. _Too _difficult.

She snapped out of it and quickly ducked back in but _goddamnit, the girl disappeared! Great._ Her mouth twitched and her eyebrows pull together in frustration, wondering if this particular young man had anything to do with it. A skeptical and analytical side of her whispered her to listen to her instincts that confirmed that yes, this young man who happened to bump into her the moment she approached the subject had to do with her sudden disappearance. And yet the still young, still fresh and not completely paranoid part of her brain told her to calm down, to stop drawing lines that did not exist. And yet the truth remained that moments ago, a lovely silver-haired, lavender-eyed girl was sitting _right there _and all of a sudden…disappeared? "There was," she murmured, narrowing her gray eyes at him.

He blinked and took a hesitant step back. "Huh?" His eyes widen and he spoke slowly and carefully. "You're not angry at me, are you?"

There was something in his tone and she couldn't tell if he was shy or if he simply didn't care. The fact that she couldn't tell the difference started to irritate her but she sighed, giving up. "No," she looked away with a resigned expression.

He stared at the girl in front of him with pale brown hair and even lighter eyes. Her accent gave her away as a foreigner - English, he was sure. He had learned English a long, long time ago in the United States and now fluent in multiple languages - all to add to his artillery of blending in - he could easily pick up the slightest tilt in her Japanese. But why would a foreigner feel the need to learn Japanese - could she be from Syndicate...someone having to do with this team Mao kept on threatening to replace them with?

Or was she a foreign agent - a Contractor hired, just as he?

He didn't know, but he decided to find out. If she was a Contractor, he needed to take her out immediately – especially if she was looking into Yin. "I'm Li," he introduced himself and held out a hand, the corners of his eyes wrinkling with a smile. "Li Shengshun. You're not from around here, are you?"

She appraised him for a moment, wondering if he was a threat but disregarded it. _I'm in a foreign country, my Japanese is crap, and I am tense...he is not the enemy._ She shook his hand with too little professionalism and too much cheeriness. Smiling, she said in a pleasant tone, "You can call me Ally."

Li looked at the stand once more and scratched his head with a shrug. "Well if you want cigarettes, I know where you can get some." He offered helpfully but with just a touch of hesitance. Her light eyes flickered up at him quickly, weighing whether or not it was a good idea…but she didn't see any harm in it. Except, of course, she didn't _need _cigarettes.

"I actually don't smoke," she said, smile still present, "but I eat." With a glance at the watch on her wrist and then over her shoulder - to where the girl had disappeared - she turned back to Li curiously and asked, "how about lunch?"


	2. The Investigation

Chapter Two: The Investigation

Alexandria Spencer snuck a glance at the tall, lean man next to her. His eyelids were lowered in a way that made her wonder if he had forgotten that she was walking alongside him. To his defense, it was easy to given her shorter statuette of just over five foot four but she was eight five percent sure his nonchalant acceptance for lunch followed by an abrupt period of ignoring her went beyond it. He looked…well, lonely. Those dark blue eyes of his stared straight ahead but once she was caught, his expression changed. It was more open, more normal. "Huh? Is there something on my face?" He asked monotonously, scratching the edge of his well-defined jaw.

"Nothing!" She said quickly and looked away but he stilled seemed curious.

"So why are you in Japan anyway?" He asked. "And uh, is it safe for you to be wandering...alone?" Again, something told her to keep quiet but she wasn't here undercover, not really. And she doubted he had any affiliation to the people the MI-6 sent her to investigate. She decided to ignore the subtle hint he had dropped of his idea of her being just another little girl. "How old do I look to you?" She asked, her eyes on him.

He blinked and stopped. He examined her carefully for a second that felt much too long before leaning back with an estimate. "Sixteen?"

Her eye twitched. And she stared at him completely unabashed but irritated. It was the height, she knew it. She was _always _discredited because she still looked like a little teenager. It wasn't her fault she stopped growing since the beginning of her high school year, that to her credit, only took two years to complete. Pulling out from the dark thoughts, she said quietly, "do I _look _sixteen to you?" She challenged in a low voice, her light blue almost colourless eyes were ablaze. He laughed almost nervously, running his fingers through his dark hair and smiled apologetically.

"I guess not," he said easily and continued walking, "eighteen?"

"Bingo."

"And you're here…as a tourist?"

She sighed and stopped again, crossing her arms. "Do I look like a tourist?" She asked this time, a humorous fatigue tone in her voice. His eyes flicker to hers quickly and curved with his polite smile.

"Well I _am _helping you find somewhere to eat," he reminded her and it was her time to be taken back. She had completely forgot, getting lost in walking – not to mention staring – instead. She opened her mouth to say something when her phone buzzed in her pocket. "One second," she murmured as her eyebrows knit together in a reaction to the name on the screen. _Decade_. "Hello?"

"Are you alone?"

She looked at Li, who was politely looking everywhere except her but she had a lingering suspicion that he was listening on. Still, it wasn't hard to disguise her answer and she knew the value of having civilian assistance when in a foreign country. She wasn't going to leave him too quickly until she gathered some information off him. "Yes, I am." There was a pause on the other line before her superior's baritone voice returned.

"We've verified the intel you found about the mafia. You have the go to carry out the mission." And then the line was over. A smile pulled up on the girl's mouth and Li looked at her.

"Something wrong?" He asked.

"Not at all, but I should get going." She grinned at him. "Thanks for…well, this much." She held out a hand to him and he stared at it for a moment before taking it firmly. Immediately she knew that his hands were callused, his fingers thin and long – hands of someone who worked. Hard. Not a student. As he pulled his hands away, her eyes caught the slightest blisters at the where the top of his palm and the base of his fingers met - indication bar work. Either he was lifting weights, or he was an acrobat. But of course that didn't meant he was a threat. Plenty of students worked out, she reminded herself. _And yet...something's off. _She looked up into his dark blue eyes and there was that same controlled, curious gaze. "It was nice meeting you."

A polite smile pulled up on his mouth. "You too, Ally." And as she turned and walked away, his face changed again and he looked every bit like the MI-6 agent thought he was: a silent, dangerous man.

0-0

"So Yin, who was she?" Huang asked, holding up a newspaper to conceal the lower part of his face as he addressed the petite girl on the swing set. Her violet eyes were far-gazed as her bare feet dug into the sand. She remembered the way her sensor indicated another girl – and not the usual pink haired, anime obsessed one – but when the stranger had talked to her, it was…normal. Weather. People. The city. Answers to questions anyone could have answered.

"I don't know," she said quietly, emotionlessly. It was then a black cat jumped on her lap, and her hands tighten around the chains.

"Well just be glad Hei distracted her so that we could get you out of there in time," Mao said, his voice tinted with the slightest scold. Unlike Huang who thought Yin would freely give away information as Dolls tended to when commanded, Mao didn't believe that Yin would betray them as much as she would be used as a hostage. He wasn't sure of himself what the entire encounter was about, but he did not believe Yin to be on the opposing side. "Something bad could have happened."

"It wouldn't have." Her voice was soft but the fact that she was protesting – mildly but going against them, nonetheless – was strange. In fact, her slowly developing emotions and independence didn't go unnoticed. "She wouldn't have."

Huang grunted, crushing the paper in his hands. He got up bristly. "What did she want?" He asked gruffly, his voice serious. She hesitated.

"She asked for my name, where I was from," the young girl answered, "and what I do."

"What did you say?"

"Nothing." Nothing except the fact that others called her Yin and that she simply watched people.

-X-

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Hey, look at that! I got some reviews for a fandom that's, you know, not _huge_. Thanks to **Valerie Michaelis****, captainheart, violentyetawesome**, Guest for reviewing/favouriting/following! Feedback would be lovely, and I hope that you enjoyed this little bit :)


	3. Encounters

Chapter Three: Encounters

The moment night fell and consumed the city, hiding all but the very few lights that conveniently only lit up what should be shown, and hid everything else in the shadows - Hei began moving out. The Black Reaper pulled on his long, black coat and each glove, one by one as his eyes behind the well-known porcelain mask followed the movement below him. Hei had just received word from Huang to move in and see what Ally – if that was even her real name – was really about. Despite the fact that he had been monitoring her since he ran into the suspicious girl this morning, he had only been allowed to search her in dept now. But when he tracked her back to the Business Districts, the first thing he saw was her coat lying on the ground in the back alley. Instantly, he knew that he should not have left her out of his sight. She had been talking to everyone for hours - and by everyone, he meant _everyone_. Town people, middle schoolers, old ladies at the grocery store, the police...all gathering information herself. The moment she had broken this pattern to suddenly delve into a deeper, darker source he knew he should have intervened and now she was probably compromised.

He narrowed his eyes and leaped onto the balcony, his back pressed against the brick wall.

Gun shots.

_She better not have died already_, he thought, frustrated. It would be better, he supposed, that she was completely out of the picture – but it was too soon for that. Not to blow his cover even in case of her death, his head only turned the slightest to check through the screen for further information on the situation at hand.

The first thing he saw was the girl on the ground, fingers clawing against it as she struggled to get up. Dirt, sweat, and blood matted her face - bullet shells littered about, and another gun thrown at her feet.

It certainly wasn't the first thing he had imagined given the fact that less than twelve hours ago, she had been in impeccable shape.

And in front of her was a group of armed men - the Mafia, he presumed. Whatever business she was getting herself into, he could not care less, but it was not until he saw what was behind them that made the breath leave his lungs. Right behind them was a Doll. There was no way this could be a coincidence. To walk by a doll accompanied by a person of power was unusual enough, let alone to be actively searching one and to be dying by the foot of another. That had to be her objective – it was the only connection he could make between Yin and her, and now she was in a situation where another Doll was a part of? Was she _collecting _dolls?

No. She was dying.

He needed answers, and he certainly wasn't going to get it from a corpse. It was now or never. In his usual style, he shattered the glass window with the hilt of his knife before flipping it over and tossing it across the warehouse, leaving a wire in its trail. Zipping down it, he took in several things at once: the destroyed room, the stained blood, the discarded bullet shells that was not scattered around the girl but the _entire_ room and more men, fallen this time, behind crates. _Did she do this_?

He didn't bother with the mafia as he glided down and slipped one arm beneath the limp girl. He kicked back and swung off the wire before re-aiming it out the window and disappeared – all in a matter of seconds. But when he landed outside the building a moment later, the girl was thrashing in his arms. "What the _fuck _are you doing?" She demanded, violently angry and yet horrified at once.

He did not react to her outburst int he slightest. He didn't reply - period. He had no reason to give this girl any explanation, although it wasn't as if she gave him time to even give one. Quick to recover, she struggled to get away from him.

But she was covered in sweat and blood yet she was still moving, as if she could simply slip back inside the building. "You're as good as dead if you go back in there," he said in a flat, passive tone and she had the energy to turn back to him and give him an irritated expression. But as soon as she placed her hand against the frame of the window – he saw it happening. Her eyes lost its focus and fluttered close, and she was falling backwards...backwards into his arms.

_How troublesome_, he thought, wondering where he could dispose her body. He _could _just drop it off in front of a hospital, but he would have to think more of that later. Right now, he just had to get out of the district before the Syndicate realize that he was involved in some sort of Doll and Mafia problem. Then again, this was the perfect opportunity to kidnap her and gather information straight from the suspect. But as soon as he stepped out of the warehouse premise, the sound of people screaming and shouting to get her became distant as he took in who was standing in front of him.

"Well hello, BK-201."

Hei didn't respond, he only repositioned the girl in his arms to throw her over his shoulder when -

"Stop! Let me take her."

He didn't respond, only staring at the blond man in front of him. This was the Contractor with the freezing ability...the one that knew of Amber. The man's eyes was hidden behind dark sunglasses but there was a frown on his face as he raised up his hands in a sign of peace. "Remember me?" He asked, his voice almost teasing. At Hei's silence, he added, "well I hope not. Now if you don't mind returning me that little girl...she has nothing to do with you and your affairs. Or even out affairs."

In a split second, Hei debated between disappearing and taking the suspect with her against the inevitable argument he would have with Huang about the difference between tracking and kidnapping and how Contractors were idiots.

He chose the latter.

Still with the same silent, careful movement, he took one step forward and the blond Contractor watched him even sharper as the Contractor clad in black _threw _the girl towards the now running and swearing man before he raised his arms and aimed the knife straight into a ledge and jumped far away from the situation.

But of course, not without sparing a glance over his shoulder at the girl in the arms of the blond man, and him whispering, "you _idiot._"_  
_

0-0

"Ugh."

She groaned, squeezing her eyes shut before slowly prying them apart, feeling as if she was ripping raw skin along with it. Bright lights blinded her and she immediately knew she was in a hospital room. The smell of surgical sterility and overwhelming _whiteness _was hard to avoid, even in the first seconds of consciousness. She didn't even bother asking _where am I, _only "who brought me here?" out loud and to no one in particular...until there was a response.

"Me, of course."

She felt sore and rigid as she turned her neck ever so slightly and she saw a man several years older than her, with fair skin, light hair and pale blue eyes exactly like hers.

Of course they were exactly like hers, the two inherited them from the same mother after all. Siblings. Her brother.

Nathaniel, or better known as November 11.

"Hey," she said and her voice was cracking and dry and despite the stillness in her voice, her heart raced. The monitor exposed her immediate nervousness, but her eyes had already given it away. He smiled at her and for a split second, she deluded herself into thinking that nothing had changed and that this was her brother Nate sitting by her hospital bed - but it was a lie. And she knew it.

Everything had changed the moment eight, almost nine years ago when her brother, Nathaniel Spencer, had become a Contractor. And there was no denying it.

"Good morning to you too, sunshine." He said cheerily as he straightened up. He was wearing a white suit and indigo underneath, dressed to nines, and she saw the glint and outline of the silver cigarette box in his breast pocket that reminded her once again that this wasn't Nate. This was November. But it was hard to keep that in mind when everything that she was told about Contractors - that they were rational creatures, that they had no feelings, no emotions, no attachments to their human lives - was not true when it came to this man beside her. He had checked in on her, had glanced at her activities...was there when she woke up in the hospital. He had kept in touch with her, a feat unproclaimed by nearly every other Contractor, albeit it was partially due to the fact that she had followed him and joined the British Intelligence group as well.

But things weren't the same and she knew it. The absence of coldness did not equal to warmth.

"What are you doing in Tokyo?" She asked as he handed a cup of water, polite as always. She had the briefest passing thought of being ten - and him a luckily, matured and borderline handsome fifteen year old - making her tea with an exasperate but undeniably fondness all those years ago as she took the cup from him but shoved that thought away. There was no use thinking about the past. She _wasn't _ten, and he _wasn't _fifteen and even if she was - it wouldn't matter. Because then in the next three years, things would change and their father would die in the war and their mother of a disease and Nate would become November and she would be alone while he would be at Heaven's Gate.

Nope, Nate's former tendency of giving her a warm beverage didn't matter. That was five years ago. This was the present. And presently the liquid relieved the scratchiness in her throat but she still felt too stiff. Looking down, she realized it was because almost every inch of her body was wrapped up in bandages. Thank God she couldn't actually _see _any of the wounds - although she knew that it was there. Scrapes, bruises...bullet wounds...

"Said the girl who is in Tokyo herself," he replied breezily. "Unaccompanied minors are -"

"I turned eighteen almost a year ago, Nate -"

"Jack."

She stared at him. A smile curled on his lips.

"Here," he gestured around, "my name is Jack Simon."

She didn't know whether or not to laugh or cry but crying was ridiculous - harsh reminders of the fact that she had no family and her only brother was not really her _brother _any longer aside - so she continued flatly, "I have reasons to be here, Jack."

"I hope it has nothing to do with Gate affairs." He said, visibly at ease now as he leaned back into his chair. His unconvincing smile reappeared that rivalled her frown. Eyebrows puckered together, she gingerly sat up straighter and handed him back the cup to refill. After a moment's thought and another sip, her eyes flickered up to her again. "I suppose that's why you're here then?"

His smile turned notches more genuine. "Ah. Deductive, aren't we?"

"I don't meddle in your affairs, and you shouldn't meddle in mine." She simply said but her voice was so obviously repeating the things that had been told to her for it to even sound anything less than robotic. Again and again, she was reminded that this was November and that there should be nothing more than curiosity between the two and even that was discouraged. "But seeing that you just _happen _to arrive in my case, I have the right to ask. Why are you following me?"

"My, aren't we a little self-centered." He mused with a smile. "And I don't remember following you at all." He continued with a raise of his eyebrows, his very same blue eyes looking at her. Ice blue eyes, she thought, how ironic. "I have my own mission and our path happened to intertwine, that's all. No more."

"And no less," she mumbled, her eyes downcast.

And then, silence.

Long, awkward silence.

Broken by his sigh, he got up slowly. "Time for separate paths yet again." His goodbye was halfhearted but his expression light and the same smile teased the corners of his mouth. As he passed by her, his hand shuffled her hair like he did so long ago. It was a miracle itself that he retained so much from his human years, but what used to be a warm habit was so horribly empty that it could have simply been the wind that mused up her hair. But just the act of seeing it triggered an age old response. "Okay, Nate."

He stopped, his mouth open slightly before closing.

"Right, sorry. November." She corrected, barely keeping the sarcasm out of her voice. He was frowning at her, shaking his head as he slipped his hands into his pockets but he stopped at the door, not turning around as he raised his hand.

"And Lexi?"

"Yeah?" She said, sounding tired. She didn't miss the fact that he had said her nickname - not at all.

"Call me again if BK-201 is around." He waved, and his voice was quiet and almost soft as he said, "and take care of yourself." And then – he was gone and she was left staring at her brother, hoping yet again that the roller coaster of his familiarity and strangeness would just end. She didn't know how much more she could take of November, or Nate.

She slumped back onto her pillow, suddenly realizing how empty her stomach was. Finding a button, she pressed down on it and received a dull sounding nurse, telling her that someone would come up with food. With her usual English manners, she thanked her pleasantly and waited...

Waited for a certain volunteer _nurse _to come up.

"Hello?"

"Li!" She exclaimed, shooting up. "What are you doing here?"

He laughed dryly, fingering his dark hair. "I have to find _some_ way to pay rent," he said as he strolled in with a tray of food. She made a face. Great, hospital food. Fantastic - and then she realized that she was still speaking in English. To Li.

"You speak -"

"International student," he simply said as he set out her food.

"What are you, a med student?" She asked as she began fingering at the food they tried to pull off as macaroni and cheese. It looked more like curly pasta with glue on it. Li smiled at her, his eyes curving as he shook his head, his hands together. _A Chinese student with perfect Japanese and English? _She wasn't sure if she was impressed at his trilingual tongue or if this was a sign to suspect him further. With a shake of her head and a reminder that she had a hole in the side of her abdomen and marks where a bullet had whizzed past by her all over her arms, she decided to ignore the fact that he happened to be very, very smart.

Lexi gave up on the food and settled with the sugary fruit cup instead. Taking a large spoonful, she continued. "Do you think I can get a laptop in here?" She asked. She had to send a message to Decade that the Mafia she had been tagging in fact _did _have a Doll, but they were using it as a slave rather than surveillance. It was still a problem, of course, but it wasn't the right one she was looking for.

She needed Dolls with mediums. And _strong _mediums. Ethics aside, she wasn't in Tokyo to save Dolls that were being taken advantage because of their docile and passive nature. Sex trafficing was disgusting, and being a female, they were revolting on a personal level - but if she was so easily bothered by her own ideals, she would never make it in the field that was The Country before You. An oxymoron on its own, one she chose to ignore. The fact remained that she could not interfere with what sickos were doing with Dolls unless they had a surveillance and connection to something useful. Picked up by MI-6 exactly ten months ago, she had found a total of only four dolls: two that relied on soil, one on plants, and one on quartz.

Obviously, these were not too useful. Not in cities. Not in a world of man made buildings. She needed to find more Dolls with mediums that can reach a large, urban scale - she needed another July with his medium to glass, she needed to find a Doll to watch through metal, through technology, through the goddamn air and water and concrete. But there wasn't, and if she couldn't locate and successfully - for lack of better word - capture one within the next month, she may be saying good bye to her international field trips and hello to a desk job for the next several years.

She pressed almost on the verge of desperation. "Or some source of internet access? Phones?"

He shook his head. "They're not allowed in patient rooms," he said with a hint of an apologetic tone but with a not _quite _there smile, "it interferes with the -"

"Right, right." She sighed, rubbing her eyes. "Can you get me that?" She pointed at a clipboard at the base of her bed. He looked at her curiously, at the exact moment the sun shifted through the window and she suddenly realized his strange his eyes: an indigo, dark blue. She had to mentally tell herself to tear her eyes away as she took it and slowly glanced down the chart with a frown. She was trained a bit in medicine before - the skill being needed to be an efficient agent.

"I should be able to leave tonight," she concluded, "but...I need to get out. Now." She had to get message to Decade and she felt capable of moving. A bit sore, and she was sure that chunks of her flesh were missing from but she was willing to endure it if it meant not being thrown to office duty. She touched the side of her waist, feeling tender but well bandaged. She should be able to move.

"Uh, I'm not sure if that's -"

"Hey, Li." She brushed him off, and smiled hopefully, "how about you help me get out of here?"

"I really don't think that we're allowed...and we need a doctor to allow a discharge -"

"Oh, c'mon Li." She struggled to get up, swinging her legs over her bed and winced. "I'll cover you if anything were to happen." But as soon as she stood up, a pain shot down her hip and suddenly, one leg collapsed under her – and she fell right into him. A horrible _déjà vu _moment fell on her, and she instinctively clutched his forearm, keeping herself upright as she forced herself to open her eyes. When she looked up, it was to his wide, navy eyes.

"You okay?"

It took her a moment too long to respond, and as if shocked, she pulled her hands back quickly from him. "You okay?" He asked again, slower this time. But his voice lacked any genuine concern, and despite the fact that she_ shouldn't _expect any, for the second time that day, she was disappointed.

-x-

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Hello, strangers!

I do apologize for the loooong update time, but to be honest...I forgot about this. But I still have some ideas playing around - so reviews would be lovely if you want me to continue :)

Thanks for reading!


	4. Interrogation

Chapter Four: Interrogation

Hei peeked around the corner and saw no one, so he ducked back into the room where the brunette was holding her stomach but otherwise standing by, waiting. "All clear," he said, his tone retaining not a single bit of personal infliction. She nodded and removed the IV from her arm with only a slight flinch before stopping.

"Wait," she said, "I can't go out like this." She was wearing the hospital garb and it was a dead give away if she would just walk off. "Can you get me anything to wear?"

He blinked and then laughed awkwardly before scratching the side of his face. "Well, I'm not really sure where I can -"

"Wait," she cut him off and took a step back, her pale blue eyes running down him. Then she took a step closer and poked him at his collar and he moved back just the slightest – but she saw it. "You're wearing something underneath the nurse get up," she said with narrowed eyes. "take it off."

"W-What?"

"I can wear your casual clothing, and you could-"

"Can't you just wear the uniform?" He countered, raising a slight eyebrow. She frowned. She already thought about that.

"No, because then I can get stopped," she said, "come on, Li, please, just help me out. I'll pay you back."

"I don't need money."

Her mouth twitched. "Please, just help me," her voice dropped and she looked up at him through her eyelashes, her cerulean coloured eyes staring at his right eye before moving slowly to his left. She was taught that eye contact meant control, and to be the one to force it upon the other meant to be _in _control. But it didn't work – not on him. He stared at her back blankly, as if there was not a thought in his head and for a brief moment, she wondered if he was a Doll. He had that passive expression, but...but where a Doll was soft and mindless, he seemed dangerous or at least capable of danger.

"Okay," he said at last after a long, thirty seconds. She sighed, relieved. But then another moment passed by and he made no move to indicate that he was going to give it to her.

"Well?" She prompted.

"Aren't you going to turn around?" He asked, although he did not sound embarrassed. She tapped her finger on her crossed arms and stared at him before turning around with more emphasis than needed. She heard the rustle of clothing – and he clearly failed at thinking his request through because she was left staring into the reflection of the window. She saw him pull the shirt over his head and his eyes remained down as his fingers quickly unbuttoned his collared white shirt and she couldn't help but watch the muscles of his torso move as he tugged out the sleeve – and then his eyes flashed up and he stared into her reflected image.

"Nosey," was all he said.

He threw her the shirt and then pulled back on the pale green, collarless nurse shirt.

"Thanks," she said as she caught it. She didn't bother to ask him to turn around – she lost the shyness of showing her body long ago. British Intelligence training brought her beyond self consciousness. She was eighteen, yes, and she knew how to use her sexuality towards her advantage but she did not exactly _see _herself as a sexual object. She pushed down the hospital gown and slipped her arms through the sleeve of the white shirt as he looked away, seeming oddly interested in the corners of the hospital room. She wasn't wearing any bra – of course not – and the white shirt already hung loosely on her frame. She examined the gown that hung from her hips before folding it up and she looked almost half decent...if no one was staring hard. After all, what looked better than a baggy button down and a DIY mint green skirt?

"All right," she nodded, "let's go."

"Ally?"

"What now?"

"Shoes?"

Her lips puckered to the side and she gave up. "You know what? If we go fast, no one would -"

"Am I helping a criminal escape?" He interrupted her, asking her lightly as his eyes moved down and back up her body.

"No," she said with exaggerated slowness, "look, all you have to do is walk in front of me. Can you do _that_?"

He ran his fingers through his hair again and then smiled sheepishly, his eyes disappearing along with it. "Well, okay."

0-0

Her hair was up in a loose ponytail, and strands fell over her face as she looked at the ground, bringing no attention to her at all. Li was walking in front of her, not saying a word and staring straight ahead and she was thinking about how to contact Decade without her cell phone – unsurprisingly, she suspected Nate to have taken it – when suddenly, a hand slipped into her and tugged her around a corner. "What are you -"

"You're drawing attention to yourself," he said quietly, and made another corner and her the skin on heel pulled against the floor, making her stumble and she bumped into him – but then they were outside in the clearing, out looking the parking lot. She blinked. That was fast. He swung her around, leaning in to be at eye level. "Where are you going to go now?"

"To the police station," she decided. She needed to get into contact with Nathaniel and no doubt he would be there, perhaps intimidating the Japanese police force. If not, he would be in the UK Embassy that shouldn't be located too far away.

"In that?" Li asked, doubtfully.

"I'll just take the train," she said, looking around, "everyone is -"

"Maybe from where you came from," Li interrupted with a mildly shy smile, "but not in Japan." She frowned at him. "And I'm going to need my shirt back." He added rather strangely. Her frown deepen. Then he rocked back on his heels, slipping his hands into his pockets. "Look," despite his call to her attention, his eyes wandered, "you can come to my apartment and grab some extra...clothing and I can bring you to the police station." He paused. "If you want."

She narrowed her eyes at him. "You didn't even want to help me before," she said, "why the change now?"

He shrugged.

And that was the end of that. She was going to his apartment...for now.

0-0

She wasn't sure what she was expecting – but this would probably come to mind. The apartment was a single flat with three rooms – maybe – and bare of pretty much anything. He left her in his room to change for privacy and he told her to take whatever she wanted despite his earlier reason of bringing her in because he wanted her shirt back. When she slid open his closet, she almost laughed when all she saw were the exact same white button down shirts and blue jeans. She unwrapped the makeshift skirt and pulled out one of the jeans. They were too long, so she rolled then up mid calf. As for the shirt, there was really nothing more she could do about it – but it was all temporary. Once she got to the police station and talked to November, she should be okay again.

When she stepped out of his room, Li was sitting on the ground, leaning against a wall. His indigo eyes slid to her – and it was with the oddest look. Observant, almost. And then he threw a pair of flip flops at her. "They were selling these by the corner, I figured it was better than bare foot."

"Thanks," she mumbled as she turned around. She steadied a palm on the wall, her back facing his as she balanced herself on one foot to put on the first slipper. "You know, I realized I was being really...pushy," she began as she slipped her feet in, "and I'm really sorry about making you -"

She gasped.

And then she collapsed.

0-0

Her head was throbbing.

Slowly, her eyes opened – this time, to darkness. Groggily, her eyes looked around the room and all she saw was further darkness. The only light was the one directly hanging over her – and unsurprisingly, she was taped to the chair.

Great. Just _great_ -

Li.

_Fuck._

"Li?" She called out. She knew it. She had a bad feeling about him earlier – he must have been caught up with the mafia somehow. No _wonder _he wanted to take her back to his apartment. She shouldn't have fallen for it, in fact, she didn't even remember why she had agreed to it. It was so _stupid_. Did three years of training really fail her like this? All those physical exams, written ones, practical ones - and she just _walked _into an enemy's house? What was she _thinking_?

She watched as a figure emerged from the shadows. It was the man from the warehouse – the one with the long dark coat and the white mask, a purple strike of thunder beneath one eye. And he had dark hair.

She wasn't an idiot.

"What are you doing, Li?" She asked through her teeth. "Not that that's your -"

And he slapped her. _Slapped _her. The shock of it made her her eyes wide, her face whipped to the side as his palm met her cheek. The pain was the same as an ice cold bucket of water thrown at her face and already she felt the heat come alive on her face, throbbing. She turned back just as quick, growling at him. "What the _bloody_ hell was that-"

"I'll ask the questions here." His voice was low, raspy. Not at all like Li's, but she was convinced it was him. She went through this in training before – through torture. She knew she could handle whatever he had to give...or at least she hoped so. But first, she needed a weapon. Her hands were tied and secured behind her in a knot she did not recognize. Her fingers played with it to no use. Her feet were tied together, she couldn't stand unless the chair was going with her.

But that was workable. That was good, even. She could use that. But she needed a _weapon_ and there was nothing in this room. Everything was dark, and not to underestimate _Li, _she knew that the room was probably empty as well. She strained to hear oncoming traffic, the sound of birds – anything – to indicate if she was still in his apartment but she was met with complete and utter silence.

And then, she realized his mask.

If she could take it...break it and use it to -

"Who do you work for?"

She didn't hesitate. "MI-6." It wasn't a secret.

"Why are you here?"

"Collect information on Dolls being used by the Mafia." This was the cover mission, one that easily went well along with the real paused, obviously not expecting her to answer at all – let alone answer so near to the truth.

"Name."

"Alexandria Spencer." Again, no hesitation, no aliases. She told him to call her Ally, and it was a common name others would use. To call her Lexi would mean to be affiliated with an agency, but in this case, she didn't care what he called her. She didn't care what he knew. Her only priority was getting out of here. Perhaps she should be afraid that he would kill her - but death was not a real option to her, not yet.

His curiosity got the better of him. "Why are you telling me the truth?"

"I have nothing to hide." She felt the heat on her face from the slap on earlier, and just the mere idea of that meek, shy boy _hitting _her suddenly occurred to her and she glared at her, her jaw tightening. "Now apologize."

He didn't say anything.

"Apologize, and I will cooperate with you."

"I don't care for your cooperation." His voice was cold.

She narrowed her eyes. "You saved my life before," she said slowly, "what do you want from me? And I swear to God if you hit me again for asking a -"

But then he reached forward again, his fingers wrapping around her arm before electricity ran through her once again and everything turned black.

* * *

I don't know where I'm going with this anymore.

But...if you're still reading - thanks! Reviews would be lovely :)


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